5 Classic Makeup Mishaps (and How to Avoid Them)

We’ve all had that conversation where someone has lipstick all over their teeth and you don’t know whether to tell them or not. Or, their black mascara is speckled all over the top of their eyelids and their application of blush is more gauche than glamorous. These are the top 5 makeup mishaps (so make sure you aren’t guilty of any!):

Clumpy Mascara

It seems innocent enough, but clumpy mascara is oh so eye-catching and hard to ignore. Once you cross the line of too much mascara, it’s impossible to return. The lashes stick together in four or five main clusters so that it looks like you have, well, four or five individual (albeit very thick) eyelashes.

Buy an eyelash comb! They are cheap, effective, and should be in every woman’s makeup bag. Alternatively, switch to falsies and get the same look without the clumping woes.

Unsightly Eyebrows

Too thin, too dark, too arched, over plucked, uneven—eyebrows can be tricky business. They may be small, but they play a big role in shaping your face. Don’t draw on eyebrows that are far too dark for your complexion, or in an unnatural brow shape. You can groom your eyebrows, but it’s unwise to try and significantly alter them. After all, their natural shape is made specifically for your face! Often it’s best to leave the shaping to the professionals before trying anything drastic at home.

Foundation Troubles

Ah, foundation. No other product causes such makeup disasters! If there is a distinct line where your face ends and your neck begins, you are wearing the wrong shade of foundation. Go to the department store makeup counter and get matched with the right one!

If you tan easily in the warmer months, you will need to have a different foundation to the one you use in winter! An orange face does not give you a sun kissed glow—it sticks out like a sore thumb.

Another important lesson is that more is not more beautiful. Don’t slather yourself in foundation or it will become cakey. Modern foundations are highly pigmented so that you don’t have to apply much for an even coverage.

Lip Liner

In the 1990s there was a period of makeup history where it was trendy to apply dark lip liner and a lighter shade of lipstick. Let bygones be bygones, I say! And, always make sure to blend, blend, blend. This comes in handy in those annoying moments when your lipstick fades in the centre of your lips (from eating, drinking etc.) but the liner doesn’t, so you have a very noticeable outline around your mouth.

Instead, use a liner that is matched to your lip’s natural colour, or colour your lips entirely with liner before applying lipstick, to avoid the fade ring.

Similarly with eyebrows, don’t overdraw. Lips are often unsymmetrical; correct what needs to be corrected and don’t draw a whole new set of lips to compensate.

Blush and Bronzer

Less is more, ladies! Blush is supposed to accentuate the natural flush of your cheeks. Subtlety is key.